I’m home for the holiday

A guy I once knew, who had plenty of experience, spoke to me about drinking on New Years Eve. He said it was for amateurs. The really dedicated drinker could get hammered any time.

It somewhat describes my feelings about this weekend. I may slide out for two or three hours of fly fishing, but driving any distance over the Labor Day weekend, like dipping snuff, leaves me cold and sneezy.

There are a number of things I can do over the weekend. I've got a muskie fishing trip coming up within 10 days to two weeks, and although I've worked on my lures, oiled and taken care of my rods and reels, there are other things that need to be done.

I’m not lacking in outdoor things to do. I just hope it cools off.

I've got to dig out my old floppy-brim felt hat that shades my eyes. It makes it a bit easier to spot a following muskie 15-20 yards away. I don't always wear it, but have caught some nice fish while wearing the hat. Is it a good-luck charm? I guess it's as good as anything else. Anyone who fishes for muskies need all the help and luck they can get.

A bunch of fishing and hunting books were purchased from an angler in western Ohio. They arrived nearly two weeks ago, and that state has some good muskie lakes (as does nearby Illinois and Pennsylvania), and I've got to get the titles cataloged. Doing so takes time, but there are some good titles on fishing for muskies, salmon, trout and walleyes in the batch. A few turkey books, some on deer hunting, and some on deer and grouse hunting, and they must be sorted through.

I keep a short list of names of people looking for a specific title, and when one shows up, they get first crack. In fact, if a certain title comes in, and no one has spoken for it up to that point, it sells to the first person that wants it. It's a fair and equitable way to do business, and if someone is already at the top of the list,  I tell the next person that he/she is second or third in line. People seem to respect that concept.

Sorting and cataloging those books will provide me with at least two days of work just pulling all that stuff into some semblance of order.

I suspect I'll do a bit of work on some of my tree stands during the early-morning hours just to make certain a big windstorm a week ago didn't loosen up the straps or chains. Climbing into a stand, and finding it wobbly, is not my idea of a good time.

I'll spend a bit of time drinking in the first of the fall color that tinges the leaves along maple ridges. I'll check close to find how tight to some wild grape arbors the grouse are holding at different times of day. I know of several wild grape arbors (ah, ah, ah, don't ask), and periodically during the summer, I'd bust an old biddie and her young ones from the area. I've left them be, but it's important to know what time they move to the different arbors. All are within a two-mile area.

My bird-finding excursions are simple but based on a hunting method I learned many years ago. One of two hunters (or someone who is not carrying a firearm) shuffles in a zigag, stop-and-go manner toward one piece of cover that is totally different from the surrounding habitat. A cut-over maple ridge with a grape arbor near the bottom of the hill is a good example.

Try my one- or two-man “shuffle” for ruffed grouse.

I begin by taking 10-15 steps to the left of a center line to the arbor. I travel at a 45-degree angle with one or two short pauses, shuffle back across that centerline with one or two pauses on another 45-degree angle in the other direction, stop, and head back to the left. The trick is to stop in an area where, if hunting season was open, you'd have room for a clear shot.

Once you near the grape arbor, position yourself properly, and rapidly tap your foot two or three times like the sound of a cat or fox darting in for the kill, and more often than you'd believe, a grouse will flush. Note the time of day, how many birds, and the direction they fly. Most often, if a hen has her brood with her, there will be a thunder of wings exploding from the thick cover.

There are a number of things to do to prepare for the fall hunting seasons. I know I'll keep myself busy while staying off the roadways. Like the old gent told me: holidays are for those who can't do it any other time.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors

Wait for the rain

Yeah, yeah, yeah .... I know. I wrote about coho and king salmon fishing in the rivers just a short time ago. So what?

Here's what. I wrote that rain brings both salmon species moving up the rivers. Colder temperatures lower the water temperature, and rain that falls through cold air, also turns river water colder. That is what may happen this weekend.

Of course, the weatherman may be wrong again. It seems as if they are right only about 50 percent of the time, but as of today, rain was forecast for the weekend.

It's a pretty elementary thing. That colder water, and slightly higher water levels, triggers salmon to move upstream toward spawning areas.

Sometimes they will scoot 10 miles upstream, and sometimes they stop at the first deep hole, and sometimes they hit extremely well as soon as they reach a deep hole. There are times when they do not.

*Salmon fishing over many years .....

I've fished river salmon since the first major run in 1967, and have learned over 43 years that there is a lot I still don't know about these game fish. What I do know is the cold rains in September cause salmon to move, and once they start moving, they are receptive to hitting.

Not always, though. Sometime nothing triggers a strike. These fish are not feeding but they will occasionally grab bait, flies or lures once they are in the rivers.

One thing stands out about Chinook salmon in Lake Michigan tributaries. Once they hit, and are fairly hooked in the mouth, they peel off on downstream runs that are difficult to stop. Anglers who remain rooted in one spot with a throbbing rod and a fish 100 yards downstream will seldom land that fish.

*Salmon fishing can be a foot-race …..

The only way to keep pace with these big fish is to stay with them. Years ago during my lengthy fish-guiding career, I told my anglers: If you want to land these large salmon, it's necessary to follow them. Some fishermen would do it, and beach a big king. Others didn't think it was necessary or didn't want to work that hard, and they would seldom land one.

It's tough work whipping up on a fresh-run Chinook salmon from Lake Michigan. Their mint-silver scales may have darkened a bit since entering the river, but they are a real handful.

Holes and runs are where most of these fish will be found before they move up onto spawning gravel, and as often as not, the water will have a generous amount of debris. One thing is certain: if the bait or the lure isn't near bottom it's not going to tempt the fish.

*Here’s how …..

A gob of raw eggs still in the skein, and a bit smaller than a golf ball will work wonders when drifted downstream under a bobber. Attach a small splitshot a foot above the bait and add more splitshot until the bobber stands straight up and down when drifting with the current. Keep adjusting the bobber depth until it drags on bottom, and then shorten up about two inches. Each new hole or run usually requires adjust the bobber to the depth in that area.

Cast across the river and far enough upstream so the spawn will be skimming bottom through the hole or run. Sometimes small salmon or trout will peck at the bait, but when a big king or coho decides to latch on, the bobber will get sucked under.

There is nothing delicate about this fishery. Slam the hook home, and jab it home again, and hang on. If the fish comes up and jumps, try to pull him sideways and off-balance. The fish will slam back into the river and may run 10 yards or 50 yards before stopping. My advice to anglers always was to stay as close to the salmon as possible.

Keep hooked fish off-balance …..

If he tries to go to the right, pull from the left side. If it tries to swim to the left, pull hard from the right. Get right in tight to the fish, and often they will jump, splashing water all over the angler. I had one 30-pound king 25 years ago jump from five feet away, slam into my chest and it knocked me over in waist-deep water. That was my wake-up call.

It was quite a sight, me going downstream, trying to swim for shallower water one-handed so I could get my feet under me while the salmon ripped off on another downstream run. It was one of those you-had-to-have-been-there moments, but feel free to use your imagination.

Spinners work very well in deeper holes. Cast across and slightly upstream, allow the spinner to sink on a tight line, and reel just fast enough to make the spinner turn over.

Kings that hit spawn under a bobber don't hit very hard. Chinook salmon that slam a No. 2, 3 or 4 Mepps Aglia spinner, can hurt your rod-holding wrist. These strikes are about as subtle as a four-car collision.

Keep an alert weather eye, and wait for the rain and some cooler temperatures.

The time to be this weekend is on one of the rivers if we get rain. There is a possibility of two or three days of rain and cooler temperatures. The water will be rising if rain develops, and so it may affect the coho and king salmon runs.

Meet them halfway on a river of your choice. The run doesn't last forever, and catching salmon soon after they enter the river will provide anglers with a fight they will long remember. Just remember to start fishing after the first rain or two of September, and the fish will provide at least a month of great action.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors

I missed the boat on this one

A friend, who keeps track of things much better than I, emailed me recently with kind words of congratulations.

My mind hurriedly ran through all the obvious things: my retirement, 32 years of marriage, good kids, gobs of grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

I didn't hit the lottery so it wasn't that. I knew it wasn't because I never buy Lotto tickets.

C’mon, already. I’m not good with guessing games.

Eventually he offered his congratulations on having hit the 2,500th consecutive daily weblog. Twenty-five  hundred of anything is a bunch, but that many without  missing more than a few surprised even me.

I emailed him back, thanked him for bringing this to my attention, admitted I'm a bit clumsy when it comes to keeping track of such things. If there had been a quiz, and the prize was $1 million if i could answer what landmark event had happened, I'd have dropped the ball and driven home penniless.

So, taking a backward look at more than 2,500 daily blogs, what do we have? We've seen the numbers of readers go from 10 to 15 per day to 25,000 to 30,000 on a daily basis. We've seen reader numbers rise and fall with the seasons, with the highest readership from September through June, and watched them tail off a bit during July and August.

The number of "unique hits" has gone from a paltry 200 per month to a high of 850,000 per month. My monthly average readership now is unknown because the counter quit working. However, that number was more than many outdoor magazines I've written for over 43 years.

Many people have become friends because we share some of the same philosophies, enjoy the outdoors, and we share our successes and failures in the woods. We often like fishing and hunting books, and one person is a very thoughtful and kind man.

This blog business means trying to be timely on a daily basis, providing solid how-to and occasional where-to information, and writing blogs that anglers and hunters want to read. The next statement probably should be left alone, but that's not my way.

Writing blogs isn’t terribly difficult but requires more mental strain than physical.

Some blogs are perhaps more meaningful to me than to my readers. I've written quite a few stories about my twin brother and I, and the things we did together as adults and kids. He died Sept. 10, 2003, and I began my string of daily blogs in November that year.

The blogs have come from everywhere outdoors. I love to help people develop their five senses, and that has been featured here. I've written about all types of fishing from bass to trout, and all types of hunting from bears to muskox. I write from my heart, and if a story makes you feel like you are with me on the trip, I've accomplished my goal.

I've railed against urban sprawl, the loss of wildlife habitat, working on streams to control erosion, fishing the hex hatch, some great techniques for hunting rub-lines and scrapes for deer, and how I never look a game animal in the eye or think about killing that animal.

My list of blogs appears endless but it hasn't reached that point yet. I've covered the failings of the DNR in recent years in their mismanaged way of controlling antlerless deer, and why in some areas there are too few deer now, even by DNR admission.

One squawk of mine is that Region II turkey hunters get shafted every spring. We can't obtain private-land turkey tags although birds come and eat bugs in our clover fields, and yet when drawing time comes for spring hunts, drawing a 1st season turkey tag is difficult, if not impossible. Private-land tags are available in Regions I and III, but not up here in Region II.

We've documented the apparent slow demise of Lake Huron salmon, and what may be a slower year fof Lake Michigan salmon anglers. People, including me, are wondering where the coho salmon are. No one seems to know. but of recent years the seem to show up a bit later each year.

I’m a goal-oriented person so my next goal is 3,000 of these things. Read on.

I try to write informative articles on all types of fishing, and bow hunting for whitetails is a special love for Kay and I. But, we can't write about deer every day so we also cover hunting ruffed grouse, waterfowl, woodcock and ringneck pheasants. We touch on fox and coyote hunting, and love to write about fishing for bluegills, crappies, salmon, trout and walleyes.

It's my intention to make you feel what I feel on my fishing and hunting trips, and allow you to learn some of the things I know or learn. A life spent in the outdoors is a never-ending quest for adventure, knowledge and outdoor observations.

I'm old enough to know there is more to fishing and hunting than catching and killing. Sometimes just being there is enough. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll end this and prepare for tomorrow's day off.

Thanks for celebrating this landmark occasion with me, and thanks to my friend for telling me about it. Happy trails.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors

Why do you hunt?

When you are fed up with the troublesome present, take your gun, whistle for your dogs, go out to the mountain." -- Jose Ortega Y Gassett, Spanish philosopher and author of "Meditations On Hunting".

The Spanish philosopher had it right. He lived through war-torn Europe in the 1930s and 1940s, and those hunting thoughts probably offered some solace while the whole world was going crazy.

Hunters today live in troubled times, and we face problems more immediate than having to listen to political hype and the mind-bending thoughts of coping with complex issues such as the upcoming political spin just before an election. We face a world of increasing numbers of hunters, decreasing acres of land available to sportsmen, a global need for fuel and the anti-hunter's wrath.

For many, there is a very real fear of losing a job. For others, the high cost of medicine is a troubling issue. For some, finding enough food to eat or staying cool in blistering heat is a never-ending problem. And then there is the fate of our armed forces trying to keep peace in a land that has seldom known peace. I support our troops and hope you do, too.

Perhaps it’s time to define why we personally choose to hunt.

Each year, I deliberately confront myself with the question of why I hunt, and the problems facing hunters. Hunting seasons open soon, and this is a time when hunters should take stock in themselves. I ask myself: Do I hunt for the meat, which is invariably delicious, to pit desk-weary skills against a wild animal, or do I hunt solely for the kill?

Few hunters I know feel a driving need to personally address such personal questions. Many wander through life turning their back on delicate, psyche-probing questions in favor of immediate gratification with a bow or firearm by killing a wild animal.

For many, the quick kill -- to hell with hunting a week -- is more in tune with today's fast-paced society and is favored by many sportsmen. But, is the quick kill right?

That's a question best answered by each individual only after intense soul-searching and addressing the question of why we hunt. We must learn, as human predators of wild animals and birds, to look deep within ourselves to determine just what hunting is and what it means to each of us.

I can't answer those questions for you, and refuse to have you speak for me. Our reasons for hunting may vary, but only the more intelligent and far-thinking of us, will ever know and understand our personal motives.

Man’s social functions of family, home and work place greater demands on people today than ever before. Peers, whether we like it or not, can force many hunters into the world of the quick kill. Because of business and family commitments, for instance, many hunters don't have much time to hunt.

There are many reasons I hunt and they are outlined here. How about you?

The Department of Natural Resources caters, albeit indirectly and probably unintentionally, to that sort of hunter attitude. It has managed deer, in large part, for the sake of quantity rather than quality for many years while making a determined effort to keep whitetail deer within reasonable bounds of their environment, food supply and social needs.

Why you hunt or why I hunt is an age-old question that cannot be answered simply with a bland statement that “we like venison or enjoy a few days with the boys.” The meaning is far more deeply rooted. It is buried deep within our ancestry, and goes back to a time when hunting was accepted by those who wanted to eat and when hunting was something everyone did as a matter of dire necessity.

Today’s sportsmen seldom hunt for food (I do because my family thrives on a wild fish and game diet); instead, perhaps it's a prehistoric feeling or need in each of us to relive our ancestry by hunting for food, for pleasure and for the kill.

The pleasure of today’s hunt is an intangible thing; it's a mix of cool air, sunrises, snow, wood smoke, a hint of winter, being with friends, hunting alone, being outsmarted by a wise old buck, and the kill, although the latter is anticlimactic in most cases.

These are just a few of the reasons why I hunt, but the strongest of all is to pit my skills against those of a wild animal I deeply respect. Yes, I kill deer (I hate the current buzzword "harvest" because we're not harvesting a corn field); we're talking about killing deer and other game animals and birds each year. Although that animal or bird dies by my hand, it gives and sustains my life and that of my family.

I don’t hunt to kill but kill to have hunting.

I live through the animals I hunt. I learn about survival because of them. I learn to think more like the predatory animal I've become. I respect each animal and bird's life as much as my own.

Hunting should never be confused solely with killing. One can hunt without killing, although I'm not sure why anyone would choose to do so. We can hunt without firing a shot, but we can't be a complete hunter without killing an animal because all predators kill other animals so they may live.

Ortega said it best, and I thoroughly agree with his statement: "I don't hunt to kill; I kill to have hunted."

How about you?

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors

Read & learn about fishing & hunting

There is a one-word statement that often is uttered following the name of a famous but deceased outdoor writer. It is: "Who?"

My outdoor education began when I was about 10 years old, and I began my personal subscriptions to Field & Stream, Outdoor Life and Sports Afield -- the so-called  "Big 3" outdoor magazines.

I read each magazine from cover to cover, and eagerly awaited the arrival of the next issue. Certain writers captured my fancy, forced me to probe my mind, test their hard-earned advice and knowledge, and they made me want to learn more about fishing and hunting.

Reading the old masters (noted below) can teach fishing & hunting.

There were many of them through the mid-1960s that helped me develop an even greater personal interest in outdoor writing. Some of those names have vanished with time as the author passes away.

Many were people whose outdoor writings captivated my imagination, and made me dream of far-flung fishing or hunting adventures. My early favorites, should anyone care, were men of great stature in the outdoor writing field at the time.

Men such as: Charlie Askins, Erwin "Joe" Bauer, Havilah Babcock, Peter Barrett, Fred Bear, Ray Bergman, Craig Boddington, Nash  Buckingham, John Cartier, Homer Circle, Eugene V. Connett, Jim Corbett, Byron Dalrymple, Henry P, Davis, Frank Dobie, Frank Dufresne, Ben East, Charlie Elliott, George Bird Evans, John Taintor Foote, Corey Ford, Arnold Gingrich, Roderick Haig-Brown, John Jobson, Bill Jordan, Elmer Keith, Tom Kelly, Dana Lamb, Arthur Macdougall, Gordon MacQuarrie, John Madson, Jack O'Connor, Robert Ruark, Archibald Rutledge, Jack Samson, Edmund Ware Smith, Robert Traver, Ted Trueblood, Joel Vance, Ray Voss, Jim Zumbo and countless others have helped, in many ways, to forge Dave Richey's writing career.

Many, in their later years, came to be personal friends. Some like Corey Ford and Robert Ruark passed away about the time that outdoor writing became my inspiration, but it had yet to become a hobby or full-time job.

I remember many discussions, in person and by mail, with Bauer, East, O'Connor Traver and many others. Some, like John Madson, were truly great writers, and I have dozens of handwritten and typed letters from Madson. His writing sparkled in a down-home manner, and he wrote with a great economy of words.

Those men above are & were among this nation’s best outdoor writers.

The late Ben East of Holly, Michigan, was perhaps the finest copy editor I every worked with. Some of these men were more outdoorsman than writers, but the late John O. Cartier, was as good in the field as at his computer or with a red editing pencil.

Ruark, although we never met, touched me deeoly with his whimsical "The Old Man & The Boy" book (see my Scoops Books for a copy), which should be required reading for anyone with an interest in fishing and hunting. It is warm, wonderful, filled with homespun philosophy, wisdom, and regardless of how great Ruark was, he died much too young as the result of far too much strong drink and a defeated liver.

The late Joe Bauer began writing while a game warden in Ohio, and he became best known for his superb outdoor photographs, his many books and his constant parade of feature articles in The Big 3. He was quiet almost to the point of shyness, and was hired to teach writers for Outdoor Life how  to shoot great photos. His humble "I don't know how I do it" was the truth, but after listening to him talk for two hours, me and many other people came away with a greater knowledge of taking prize-winning photographs.

Most of the really good writers were reticent about discussing their fame and glory of their work. Others barked and bleated if things didn't go their way, and still, they did some things that others really wanted to learn.

There are many tales of the late Elmer Keith. He was fairly short, wore a big cowboy hat, disliked Jack O'Connor intensely (the reverse was also true), but many are the tales of Keith's exploits. He once saved a woman's purse after a man snatched it from her hand. Keith is said to have pegged several shots with his six-shooter around the culprit, who wisely dropped the purse and fled. Keith tipped his hat, gave the woman her purse, and walked off.

Reading good writing can lead to far better angling & hunting success.

These men were people I looked up to, and meeting them (most of them), was a high point in my life. I also met Ted Williams, baseball's last .400 hitter years ago, and I showed no more hero worship for him than for the outdoor writers noted above. I simply admire their skills at their chosen jobs, and in truth, the angling or hunting writer were more real to me than someone like Williams.

The point of this discourse is that reading today's outdoor writers offers a peek into their lives. You can learn from the true outdoor writer, the one who spends time in the field, but learn very little from the indoor-outdoor writer, a person who writes about fishing and hunting but never does it.

Fishing and hunting, as we know it, will gradually lose some of its luster as this world keeps spinning. It will never entirely die out, but people will become more diversified, and parcel ever smaller amounts of time to these pastimes in the future. So, if you love fishing and hunting now like I do, read as much about it as possible now.

To read is to learn, and to learn means one will become more successful in the future. Today’s outdoor writers, and those of yesteryear, deserve some attention. People can become better anglers and hunters by reading and studying the combined works of 20th and 21st century sportsmen-writers.

And offer a word of occasional thanks to those who toil so you can better enjoy the outdoors. Many of my favorite writers are long gone, and one day, some of today's favorite writers will also be gone, this writer included.

Let them know you appreciate their efforts. Doing so after they have fished around their last bend or hunted their last grouse covert or deer woods, as is true with some of those greats who were mentioned above, is a belated attempt to reverse an earlier error of omission.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors

Use the Labor Day weekend to fish or plan for hunting seasons

It's a good question. For many anglers, the answer is easily solved by heading out onto Lake Michigan for some of the best salmon action in years.

For others, who enjoy wading a river, it's Chinook salmon time again. Somefish have moved up the Betsie, Manistee and Pere Marquette rivers prior to spawning, and can be caught on flies, lures or spawn.

Tired of fishing, the early Canada goose season will  open Sept. 1 although with just a few exceptions, I haven't seen many honkers flying around the northern counties.

The early goose season can be good when the birds are flying.

If none of that interests you, try spending some preseason time scouting in advance of the upcoming archery deer season that opens Oct. 1.

Let's take a little closer look at what is going on in the outdoor world over the long Labor Day weekend.

Lake salmon fishing has gone through another decent season. Limit catches are fairly common in many locations, and kings are running up to 18-25 pounds.

Hotspots are all up and down the Lake Michigan shoreline from Benton Harbor-St. Joseph, Saugatuck, Grand Haven, Muskegon, Ludington, Manistee, Onekama, Elberta, Frankfort, Platte Bay, Leland, Traverse City (both arms of Grand Traverse Bay), Acme, Elk Rapids, Charlevoix, Petoskey and any spot in-between these ports.

Dodgers and Squids or Sparkle Flies are working well, as are J-plugs, and a whole host of spoons like the ever popular Silver Streak. Some coho have arrived, but very few at this writing, are being caught off Frankfort, Point Betsie and Platte Bay near Honor. Most of the catch are Chinook salmon with the occasional steelhead thrown in to add a bit of spice to an anglers life.

River fishing is fairly good to superb on the Big Manistee River from Tippy Dam downstream to Manistee Lake. Large chunks of skein eggs are an attractive (to the fish. anyway) bait, and plenty of fish are being caught on FlatFish, Tadpollys, Hot 'n Tots and other diving plugs fished with the dropback method through deep holes and runs.

If we get a good cool rain, it can put more salmon into area rivers.

Guide Mark Rinckey of Honor (231-325-6901) has been out checking the Betsie River. Fair to good numbers of salmon are being caught in the Pere Marquette, Grand, Muskegon and other Lake Michigan tributaries. There are no spawning fish yet, and a good cool rain would spark up the action.

Goose season, as noted above, opens Sept. 1. Most of the birds are sitting in secluded areas, on refuge water or near the mouth of many rivers. Many anglers I know may spend time casting to Chinook salmon on rivers near the mouth, and often on opening day, the birds will lift off and fly up or downstream over the heads of fishermen. Those low-flying birds are dead or fully educated on the first day, and hunting the rivers becomes much more difficult after that.

The hunters hunker down near the river bank, and allow the birds to fly overhead before raising up and taking a shot. Make certain you have the necessary state and federal stamps, are  more than 450 feet from any building, and note that only steel or other nontoxic shot is legal. It sometimes can be the best action, but know what lies beyond the flying geese, and make certain it's not another angler on the other side of the river.

Some grain fields that are being or have been cut are naturally attractive to geese. Get landowner permission, and get there early and get set up. Geese often fly at dawn, and hunters need to have their decoys in place long before sun-up.

Not into chasing Canada geese or salmon fishing, but are chomping at the bit to hit the woods for whitetail deer when the Oct. 1 season opens, hunters should consider spending parts of each day watching deer from afar.

Get a jump on preseason scouting for whitetail deer.

Study the animals through binoculars or a spotting scope, and pay close attention to where they enter feeding fields and at what time. This knowledge will allow hunters to pinpoint key areas to put up a tree stand.

Watch deer at the same spot for three evenings, and it's possible to have them pegged. They will still be using those same summer trails on October 1. If the deer are not frightened off by people walking around in their bedding areas, they will probably offer a shot during the early season. This preseason scouting is so important, and it is all too often overlooked by so many hunters.

These are just several things to consider for a weekend pastime. Have fun, be careful and take care of each other.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors

River dancing with big salmon

Years ago we had an early cool snap, a cold rain fell, and suddenly the Betsie River was awash with fresh-run Chinook salmon. Everywhere one looked were fish moving upstream, their backs creasing the surface.

Brother George and I were fishing two small holes 30 yards apart, and he was casting a wet fly while I was pitching a copper No. 2 Mepps Aglia spinner. It was midweek, and we seemed to have the river to ourselves.

George hooked a fish on a pattern he devised for dark-water, and it was called The Crick. It was basically a black fly with a bit of color, and he was bouncing it along bottom when it stopped and the line switched sideways, There is nothing delicate about setting the hook on a big river salmon. It is a happening!

Hooking a big river Chinook salmon like like hooking the caboose of a down-bound freight train.

I could hear him grunt as he muscled back to pound the hook home. I took two turns on the reel handle, and a king salmon tried mightily to wrench the rod out of my hands. I urged him into a fighting mood with a hard double hook-set, and there we stood, 20 yards apart, the Richey twins, each one tight to an angry king salmon.

My fish started downstream, and jumped almost into his back pocket, and George spun around, glared at the fish heading out into midstream as his fish ran upstream away from the splash. His fish jumped out in front of me, and we both had to get moving to avoid tangling our lines.

He shuffled upstream while I moved down, and we had the two fish separated by 20 yards when his big king swapped ends, and headed downstream behind me as I scrapped with my fish in the deep hole. I stepped backwards, stepping over his line, and then we stood there, our backs almost touching, as we tried to beat up on those fish.

"Having fun yet?" he asked, knowing I was.

"Nothing better than a 25-pound king trying to rip the rod from your hands," I replied. "Waited a year to do this again."

The silence of the moment was hushed by splashing fish, and then George's fish headed upstream, and our two fish were as close together as we were, and both were struggling upstream, fighting the river current and our heavy rod pressure.

"Could get a bit tricky soon," he noted. "If both of them come down together, it will be interesting to see if we can get out of the way while keeping them separated."

The Chinook salmon apparently read his mind or heard his voice, and like two submarines heading for two troop ships, here they came. One fish stayed deep and mine was near the surface, and I pulled from one side to upset his travel pattern. George and I always seemed to read each other's mind, and he did the same except he pulled in the opposite direction.

Two big fish, two anglers -- all in a huddle -- in the middle of fast water.

The fish hit the air, both in half-hearted jumps, and it was as if we were in a ballet on water. We reacted in unison without discussing it, and his move and mine complemented the other. The kings, reacting in a somewhat predictable manner, responded in kind. This was a battle of two twin men, working on two adult Chinook salmon of equal size, and it couldn't have been choreographed any better.

My fish cut between me and shore, spinning me around as it charged downstream. George's fish peeled around him in midstream, and now both fish were wallowing on the surface.

My fish was just half-a-shade lighter in coloration than his but it played out faster on the spinning tackle. I led the fish to shore, grabbed it by the caudal peduncle (the wrist-like narrowing just ahead of the tail), lifted it out, reached for my long-nose pliers, and twisted the treble free and released the fish.

I grabbed my camera and began clicking photos of George as he landed his 25-pounder. There was a bit of color in the background, and he held his fish aloft for two or three photos.

He bent over, released the fish with the dignity it deserved after putting up a valiant fight, and we were off looking for another adventure.

Those were the days when George and I lived our lives to the fullest, guided fishermen, and traveled Michigan's rivers together as we did everything else ... together, and as a team.

Such days were common-place for George and I, and we lived for them.

Today I was on the Betsie River again, and my thoughts of George were wonderful as i looked for fish below the old Homestead Dam. I found a few fish but they weren't hitting. The river water is still warm, and oddly enough, there were no people where I was at.

I cast to several fish but the fish were really spooky. One cast, and they would head into a timber-lined hole. The last thing they seemed interested in was flies or spinner, but it was a good day for remembering my twin brother.

I still think of him daily after almost seven years since his premature death, and although we hunted together as well, it was on those early salmon and steelhead trips that we became almost welded together, inseparable as two peas in a pod. I miss him, and just remembered this story today as I tried to recreate that day, and it's one of my favorites.

Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors